Next Door
by Show Expert 1
Summary: Lucy Dragneel is happy with her life. She has a great job, great husband, and a great daughter. However, a new guy has moved into the neighborhood and is trying to get close to her, but he seems like a nice and harmless guy. Everything seems normal, but nothing is ever normal and it's all right next door.
1. Nate

Magnolia. Appears to be a simple place. Inside this town lives a woman who has been living a simple life: Lucy Dragneel. She was a beautiful blonde woman who loved her life. Lucy lived in this town as an English teacher at Magnolia High School. She was happily married with her husband Natsu and her teenage daughter Nashi.

"Nashi, come down for breakfast." Lucy called out.

"Coming." Nashi said as she came down the stairs. Nashi was about fifteen years old and had pink hair that went down to the bottom of her neck.

"So are you excited, Nashi?" Lucy asked. "You're about to enter your sophomore year of high school in a few days."

"I guess as long as you don't embarrass me." Nashi said. "Don't get me wrong, Mom. I'm glad I got you as a teacher, but I don't want you embarrassing me around my friends."

"You don't need to worry about that." Lucy said as she served her some fruit and waffles. "You know as well as I do that it's your father that embarrasses you more than I do."

"True." Nashi said as she started eating.

"Hey!" Natsu said as he heard all of what they just said as he came into the kitchen. Natsu had hair color like Nashi and had it in spikes. "Excuse me for being a carrying father."

"Dad, I know you love me, but you scare some boys away." Nashi said.

"I just want to make sure no boy hurts you and if they do, they are not going to live to see tomorrow." Natsu said. It's that kind of overprotective attitude of his that Nashi finds embarrassing.

"Eat up. We've got a lot to do, Nashi, before school starts." Lucy said. The family ate up their breakfast. When both of them finished eating and Nashi got dressed for the day, she and Lucy were about to head out into town.

"Mom, I don't suppose there's any way you can give me a pass if I don't have a notebook or anything for class, right?" Nashi asked as the two of them were about to get in Lucy's car. They were planning on heading out for school supplies.

"Nice try, Nashi." Lucy said. "Now that I have you as a student, I'm going to make sure you are getting your work done. That's also why you're coming with. I'll make sure you have everything you need at least for my class."

"Mom, you know I always get my school work done." Nashi said.

"I know. I'm just messing with you." Lucy said as the two of them got in. Lucy opened up the garage, but she noticed it didn't go up all the way. "Dang it."

"You know you don't have to use safe words around me anymore." Nashi said. "I'm not a child anymore."

"Yes, I know." Lucy said. Nashi has been saying she isn't a child anymore for years. "Nashi, you try getting the garage to go up. I'll try pushing it up."

"Shouldn't we get Dad?" Nashi said.

"How heavy could it really be?" Lucy said as she got out of the car and right under the garage door. "Go for it!" Nashi hit the button. Lucy felt the door going down and Nashi tried to get it to go up. Lucy pushed, but it was heavier than she thought.

"Mom, are you okay?" Nashi said.

"No." Lucy groaned as she felt the garage door coming down again.

"I've got it!" A young man came in and held it up for Lucy and managed to take the weight off her. Lucy looked to see he was a handsome looking blonde with perfectly combed hair that was about twenty.

"Thank you." Lucy said.

"I think it's stuck in place." The man said. Nashi stepped out of the car to see what was going on.

"I see you young ladies have some big help." An elderly man in a wheelchair came wheeling in.

"Oh! Hello, Mr. Chester." Mr. Chester was their elderly next door neighbor that lived next door to them. Natsu saw what was going on and came out.

"What's going on here?" Natsu said.

"Hello. I see you all have met my grandson, Nathan." Mr. Chester said.

"Please call me Nate." He said as he held out his hand.

"Hi, Nate." Lucy said as she shook his hand. "I'm Lucy Dragneel. This is my husband Natsu and our daughter Nashi."

"I never knew Mr. Chester had a grandson." Nashi said.

"Yeah. As you can probably see, I haven't really visited my grandfather lately." Nate said. "You mind if I take a look? I might be able to find the problem."

"Nate is a great mechanic." Mr. Chester said.

"Sure." Lucy said.

"Yeah. I've been trying to fix that for weeks, but I can't find the problem." Natsu said. Nate went right inside and had a look.

"So what's with the sudden appearance of your grandson?" Lucy asked.

"Nate just moved in. He's going to be staying with me for a while." Mr. Chester said.

"I think I see the problem." Nate said. "I can fix it up for you, but I'm going to need to run to a hardware store."

"You actually found it?" Natsu said as he's been looking for days and could find nothing.

"It would be great if you could fix it. We can't have the whole thing falling down on our heads." Lucy said. "Nashi, could you go with him and show him where the hardware store is? Maybe you can also show him around town."

"No problem. Come on, Nate." Nashi said as Nate come out and followed her with Natsu not liking her going off with some boy they don't even know.

"Nate seems like a nice boy. So how come he's living with you?" Lucy asked.

"Well, Nate's parents died in a car accident a couple years ago." Mr. Chester said. "He didn't even get to finish high school and struggled to support himself. He soon ended up getting evicted from his home."

"Oh no." Lucy said as she felt so sorry for the boy.

"So until we can figure something out for him, he's going to be staying with me." Mr. Chester said.

"That's nice for you. You've got some company and someone to help you around the house." Lucy said.

"He won't be around for long if he tries anything with Nashi." Natsu said.

"Natsu, you need to take things easy. I'm sure he's a nice guy." Lucy said. "Mr. Chester, how about you and Nate come over and join us for lunch? It can be our way to welcome him."

"That would be lovely." Mr. Chester said.

….

Nashi and Nate

Nashi showed Nate around Magnolia to have him familiar with the town. They arrived in the hardware store and she saw two people when entering. Once they entered, Nashi saw two people she knew well. One was a redhead boy her age and a woman who had red just as red.

"Hi, Simon!" Nashi said to the boy behind the counter.

"Hey, Nashi." Simon said and Nashi turned to the woman.

"Hello, Vice Principal Scarlet." Nashi said.

"Nashi, you can just call me Mrs. Scarlet." Erza Scarlet, she was the vice principle at Nashi's school and she also happened to be Simon's mother. "I'll see you back at home, Simon. I'm hoping to see you both at school."

"Later, Mom." Simon said as Erza left. When she left, Simon noticed Nate. "Who's this guy?"

"Simon, this is Nate. Nate, this is Simon." Nashi said. "He's an old friend man."

"Great to meet you man." Nate said.

"Can I help you find something?" Simon said.

"No. I think I'll be okay." Nate said as he and Nashi went to look around the store. "So how do you know those people?"

"Simon and I have been friends since we were kids." Nashi said. "Not only that, but as you saw, his Mom is the vice principal of my school. On top of that, both of our moms have been friends for years."

"I see." Nate said. "Look, I know what to look for, Nashi. You can just hang back. I shouldn't be long."

"Okay." Nashi said as she walked back to the counter.

"So what's the deal with this guy?" Simon asked.

"He just moved into my neighborhood." Nashi said. "He's going to be staying with his grandfather right next door until he figures out what to do with himself." Simon heard the bell to the door rang and saw the people come in who was a guy with a couple girls.

"Uh oh. Dominic is here." Simon said and Nashi groaned in misery. Dominic was a couple years older with dark brown hair. He looked over and saw Nashi.

"Nashi!" Dominic said as he went over trying to act cool. "What a surprise meeting you here."

"Beat it, Dominic." Nashi said.

"Come on now. Don't be like that." Dominic said as he placed his arm around her, but Nashi tried to resist.

"Dominic, just get what you came for and get out." Simon said.

"Well right now, I've got something I want." Dominic said as he slid his hand down Nashi, but she pushed him off.

"Will you just leave me alone?" Nashi said.

"Come on, baby. You, me, and the girls can have some fun." Dominic said as he tried to get closer to her, but Nate came just in time and pushed him back.

"Is there a problem here?" Nate asked as he tried to defend her.

"Maybe." Dominic said as he went from cool to tough.

"Dominic, get out." Simon demanded. Dominic did what he was told as he and the girls left.

"Who was that?" Nate said as he placed his items on the counter for him to buy.

"Dominic. He goes to our school." Nashi said. "He's one guy I don't mind my Dad scaring off. He's a sexual harassing creep that thinks all girls want him. The two with him were just part of his entourage. When he sees a girl that interests him, he tries to make her his. It's disgusting."

"Hopefully, he won't be a problem." Nate said.

….

The Dragneels

Nate was able to get the garage fixed and it was a big help. Lucy lived up to her offer as both sides were having a nice lunch outside on the Dragneel's picnic table and cooked up a little barbecue.

"So what are you planning on doing, Nate?" Lucy asked.

"I'm not entirely sure. I never finished high school so getting a job or a place of my own might be a little tough." Nate said. "At the moment that's probably a good thing."

"How come?" Natsu asked.

"My grandpa will be going to the hospital to have a little surgery done. They're going to point in some bionic parts in him so he can move his legs again." Nate said.

"I'll be gone for a few weeks." Mr. Chester said. "I sure hope Nate can take care of himself until I get back."

"Well, Nate, if you need anything, you're more than welcome to come over and ask for anything." Lucy said. Knowing what a hard time this boy went through, she wants to try and help him. "We just need to figure out what to do about an education."

"Mom, you're great friends with Vice Principal Scarlet." Nashi said. "Can't you talk to her? Maybe she can let Nate come to Magnolia High to finish up."

"I suppose it's worth a shot." Lucy said since she wasn't fully confident in that.

"That would be great!" Nate said. "Thank you, Mrs. Dragneel. I really appreciate what you're trying to do for me."

"It's no trouble at all." Lucy said. She believed Nate was really a nice guy. What's the worst that could happen?

…..

Night

Later that night, Lucy got done in the shower as she walked out from the bathroom and into her bedroom with a towel wrapped around her. She pulled out a few clothes to get ready for bed, but she stopped. She felt something strange like something was burning in the back of her head. She turned around to her bedroom window. She walked over and opened the window. She leaned out, but didn't see anything strange.

"Hey!" Lucy got scared, but she turned to see it was just Natsu. "What are you doing? You better not be showing off to some other guy?"

"Very funny." Lucy said with a chuckle. "I thought there was something out there. I was probably just imagining things."

"We're in a friendly neighborhood. What could be out here?" Natsu said as he walked by. Lucy knew he was right. Nothing bad really happens around here. Lucy went back to getting ready for bed, but her watcher was more careful. Nate's new room was just outside of Lucy's bedroom. He stood there and watched as she dropped the towel and tried to stay in the shadows so she couldn't see him.


	2. Recommend

Lucy went to talk to Erza about wanting Nate to be part of Magnolia High. She went over to the school and into Erza's office. She tried to convince Erza, but it did a little doing.

"Come on, Erza. Nate seems like a nice guy." Lucy said. "He just had a trouble past and he never got to finish high school."

"I don't know about this, Lucy." Erza said. "The new school year is about to start and we don't even have any of his records."

"What's one more student, Erza?" Lucy said. "What? Are you thinking you might not have the power to do so? You're the vice principle, not to mention your husband, Jellal, is the chief of police. You have so much power that it's almost scary."

"Sometimes you need people to fear you." Erza said. She considered it some thought, but she didn't really seem any harm in letting just one more student join their school. "I suppose it couldn't do any harm. I would have to get in contact with his old school and gain access to his records to see what kind of student he is. I would also need a list of recommended classes for him since I have no idea about his intellectual level."

"I can do it." Lucy said. "He's staying right next door. I can talk to him or his grandfather about the type of classes he usually takes."

"Okay. If you're really sure you want to do this for this boy." Erza said and Lucy was glad to hear that.

….

The Dragneels

After Lucy was done talking to Erza, she headed on home. Lucy got to work right away about that list of classes she recommended on taking for Nate around the senior level. As a backup, she printed out the list once she got done.

"You're really doing something nice for this boy." Natsu said.

"Yeah. I just can't turn away if I see someone that needs help." Lucy said. Natsu walked over and wrapped his arms around and started kissing her neck.

"That's one of the things I love about you. You've got a heart of gold." Natsu said. "Now we just need him to keep his distance from Nashi."

"Natsu, you need to lighten up." Lucy said. "You didn't like some of the guys Nashi was friends with when she was a little girl, but you warmed up to them. Just do the same for Nate. All she's doing is being polite."

"Alright. So what do you say when you're done with this, I do something for you." Natsu said as he started kissing her. Neither of them noticed Nate walking in.

"Oh! Sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt." Nate said.

"Its fine, Nate. Nothing was really going on." Lucy said.

"Anyway, I was just wondering if I could get a little help getting my grandfather into my truck." Nate said. "I'm going to take him to the hospital."

"Yeah. No problem." Natsu said as he went to help him and Lucy placed the list down to help out. Nate noticed that Lucy left her computer opened up and on.

"There we go." Natsu said as he made sure Mr. Chester was fastened in the truck.

"Thanks a lot." Nate said as he got in the driver's side. "I hope I get to see you at school, Mrs. Dragneel."

"Maybe. You take care, Mr. Chester." Lucy said. Nate started up the truck and drove his grandfather off. Lucy looked over to the next door house. She thought how Nate would be in their all by himself and Mr. Chester wouldn't be able to help out when it's needed. She really hoped things work out well for Nate.

…

Few Days Later

"We're here!" Lucy said as she and Nashi arrived at Magnolia High. The first day of school has arrived as they both pulled into the parking lot. "So are you sure you have everything?"

"Yes, Mom. You don't need to worry. It's not like this is my first day of school ever." Nashi said.

"I know. I'm sorry, but as your teacher, I have to make sure that you are prepared for your classes." Lucy said. "By the way, if you see Nate, make sure you help him out if he needs it."

"I will. I'll see you in a few hours." Nashi said as she walked off, but stopped and turned back. "Mom, don't forget that Dad and I will be heading over to see Uncle Zeref and Aunt Mavis and spend the weekend over there."

"Right. Now go before you're late." Lucy said as Nashi went inside. Lucy gathered her stuff. When she had everything, she noticed Nate's truck was in the parking lot showing that he made it with no problems. Everything was going good so far. A few classes later, Lucy was starting up her class and she was excited to have Nashi in it. "Hello, class. My name is Mrs. Dragneel and this is English. While it's true that I am Nashi's mother, I won't treat her or any of you different."

"Good to know." Lucy looked to the door and saw Nate and she didn't know why he was here. As soon as some of the girls saw him, they all had hearts in their eyes.

"Nate! This is a surprise." Lucy said and turned back to her class. "Class, this is Nathan Chester. He might be twenty, but he is here to finish and get his diploma due to some circumstances. Nate, is there something I can help you with?"

"I would hope so. My schedule says I'm suppose to be here." Nate said. Lucy found that strange because she set the list for him at a senior class and she teaches sophomores.

"Okay. Go ahead and take a seat anywhere you see an available one." Lucy said as she allowed Nate to come in. Nate went over and found a seat next to Nashi.

"Hey, Nashi. What are the odds we both end up here, right?" Nate said.

"I know. I guess my Mom just wants to keep an eye out on you in case you need help." Nashi said. Nate thought so too and he's definitely keeping an eye on Lucy.

…

Teacher's Lounge

When Lucy was free, she went and spent some time looking over some of her paperwork in the teacher's lounge, but she could not stop thinking on how Nate ended up in her class.

"Looks like someone already took a liking to you." She looked up and saw Erza carrying a vase with flowers with red, orange, and lavender roses. She placed them down on the table for Lucy to admire.

"Are you saying these are for me?" Lucy asked.

"Yes. That's what the card says." Erza said as she handed one over to her.

"Beautiful roses for a beautiful woman and beautiful teacher." Lucy said. She looked around the card and saw there was no name for who they were from.

"I'm only guessing, but these are probably from Natsu." Erza said.

"What makes you think that?" Lucy said.

"Think about how the meaning of these roses." Erza said. "You know how much he loves you. He's been doing big gestures like this for as long as I've known him. Besides, it can't be any of the other teachers here. We've all been working here for years."

"Perhaps." Lucy said as she loved all of them. "You're probably right. I can't really think of who else could have done it. By the way, why did you put Nate Chester in my English class? I recommended him for the senior classes. I teach sophomores."

"What are you talking about?" Erza said. "The list said you wanted him placed in your class."

"No. I didn't put that in." Lucy said.

"Yes you did. You sent me the emailed with your name and class on the list." Erza said as she took out her phone. "Look. I have it right here." She opened up her email and showed it to Lucy. Lucy looked it over and saw Erza was right. Her name and class was on the list, but Lucy could have sworn she didn't.

"That's strange." Lucy said. She was certain she had it the other way around.

"Anyway, how about you put those flowers in your classroom with some water. I hate something beautiful like these go to waste." Erza said as she got up and left. Lucy looked back at the flowers. She didn't understand why Natsu did it, but she figured it was just out of love. She reached out her phone and gave him a call.

"Hello?" Natsu said on the other end of the phone.

"Hi, Honey. I just want to say thank you. They're lovely, but you didn't have to do it." Lucy said.

"It was nothing. What did I do exactly?" Natsu questioned.

"The flowers." Lucy said.

"Flowers? What flowers?" Natsu said and things just got stranger for Lucy.

"You didn't send me any flowers?" Lucy asked.

"What are you talking about?" Natsu asked.

"Someone just bought me a vase and flowers, but there was no name on the card. I thought they were from you." Lucy said.

"Sorry, but I didn't do that." Natsu said.

"Okay. I'll call you later." Lucy said as she hung up. Lucy knew as an English teacher that each of these flowers held a symbolic meaning to them, but if Natsu wasn't the one that gave them to her, who did?

….

The Dragneels

As soon as the first day was over, Lucy went into her office and was looking over some of her paperwork. She saved the printed out copy of the list and she compared it to the email that was sent. Both of them were different. She knew she had Nate set to take senior classes, but her class was the only one that changed. She didn't even check her list before sending it so she didn't notice the change. She didn't know how this happened.

"Nashi!" Lucy called and her daughter came over to her office.

"Yeah, Mom?" Nashi said.

"Were you on my computer recently?" Lucy asked.

"No. Why?" Nashi asked.

"It's weird. I have a printed form of the list of classes I wanted Nate to take, but the email that was sent to the vice principle has my class on it instead." Lucy said. "I guess I just thought you might have changed it around."

"I didn't." Nashi said. "Maybe you're just overthinking this, Mom. There was probably just a mistake that happened or something."

"I guess you're right." Lucy said as she thought it was best to let the whole thing go.

"Nashi!"

"Up here." Nashi called out. "Mom, I'm going to take Nate to meet some of my friends. I should be back for dinner."

"Okay. That's fine." Lucy said as Nate showed up.

"Hey. Ready to go?" Nate asked.

"Let me just get a few things." Nashi said as she went to her room.

"I heard you got a nice set of flowers, Mrs. Dragneel. Roses" Nate said.

"Yeah. I thought my husband…..wait." Lucy said as she realized something was wrong. "How did you know they were roses?" Nate gave off an innocent smile and she put the pieces together. "Nate, were you the one that sent those?"

"Did you like them?" Nate asked.

"Yes, but you can't do that, Nate. I thought they were from my husband" Lucy said. "Each of those flowers and their colors held a strong meaning and I also read the card."

"Oh1 I'm sorry. I didn't mean anything inappropriate." Nate said. "It was just my way of saying thank you for everything you've done. I just picked some flowers I thought looked nice."

"Nate, I'm glad to do all this. Just be more careful so people don't get the wrong idea." Lucy said and it seemed like Nate understood.

"Let's go, Nate." Nashi said.

"Be right there." Nate said as Nashi went ahead. "Oh! You also might want to be careful. I….recommend…..you shouldn't leave your computer out and open. Anyone could look into it." He said before he left. Hearing him say that helped Lucy figure all of it out. Nate was the one that gave her the flowers AND changed her email. He must have done it while they were helping his grandfather into his truck. By doing that, Lucy had only wondered about one thing: Why?


	3. Alone

"So Nate gave you some flowers and wanted to be in your class. What's so weird about that?" Natsu asked. With it being dark out and it being a Friday night, Lucy and Natsu stayed up and she just told him what Nate has been doing. At first he thought it was a little strange, but after hearing all the details, it didn't seem so bad.

"I don't know. First, messing around on my computer was a violation of privacy. You shouldn't be on someone's computer without permission. You never know what you might find." Lucy said. "Second, it was what he put on that card that bothered me. I know I said I wanted to help him out, but he's behaving strangely."

"I think you're just putting too much thought into it." Natsu said. Lucy thought about it for a second and she was starting to think he was right.

"I guess. Nate seems harmless." Lucy said. "He was probably nervous about going to school given what he's been through so he probably just wanted a familiar face. That might have been why he switched his classes around."

"Yeah. As for the flowers, it's probably just what he said. I'm sure he was just saying thanks for all you're doing for him." Natsu said.

"I feel so silly." Lucy said with a chuckle. "For a minute I thought Nate…I don't know….it seem like he was interested in me or something. That's insane. He knows I'm married and I'm almost twice his age."

"Though you never knew you were in your late thirty's with a body like that." Natsu said. "You still look like you're in your twenties."

"You don't look so bad yourself." Lucy said as she went over to him and kissed him with Natsu placing his arms around and added a little passion to the kiss.

"How about we go upstairs and confirm you're with me?" Natsu said.

"Natsu, you bad boy." Lucy said as she gave a gentle smack to the chest. "We have to be quiet and settle. We might wake Nashi up and Nate could be just across our window."

"I think we'll be okay." Natsu said as he hoisted her up and she wrapped her legs around him as he kissed her and carried her upstairs. Nate was still awake and he was in his room just hanging. He heard a noise and looked over to see Lucy with Natsu. He saw Natsu and Lucy undress each other as Natsu placed her on the bed. Natsu kisses down Lucy with her body being filled with the sensation. However, she got distracted for a minute as she felt the same feeling she felt a few days ago, that someone was watching her. She looked over to the window and didn't see a thing. She decided this time to just forget about it as she let her husband have his way with her as she fell back. Nate stayed out of sight like the first night, but he seemed more upset and angry.

…

The Next Morning

"You sure you don't want to come?" Natsu asked as he was packing his card. He and Nashi were going to pay a visit to his brother's place and the two of them would be gone all day.

"I wish I could, but I have some work that I need to do." Lucy said as she gave him a peck. "You two go and have some fun."

"Try not to get in too much trouble while we're gone, Mom." Nashi said as a joke.

"Very funny." Lucy said.

"Alright." Natsu said as he gave her one more peck. "We'll be back tomorrow evening." He and Nashi hopped inside the car and were driving off.

"Bye, Mom!" Nashi called out.

"Bye!" Lucy said as she waved the two of them off and left her all alone in the house.

"Where are those two going?" Lucy turned around and saw Nate hanging back at the front of his house.

"Natsu and Nashi? They're just paying Natsu's brother and his wife a visit." Lucy said. "Don't miss them too much. They'll be back tomorrow."

"And they leave you all alone to fend for yourself?" Nate questioned in a joking tone. "They shouldn't leave a lady like you home alone."

"I'll have you know I can fend for myself." Lucy said as she was thinking he was being funny.

"Perhaps, but you've got me." Nate said. "So you aren't totally ALL ALONE." Lucy was beginning to feel uncomfortable with what Nate is applying and decided to just head inside to her home. She's trying to Nate's strange behavior behind her, but Nate keeps doing one thing after another and she wasn't liking this at all.

…..

At Night

"I'm telling you that it's strange, Erza." Lucy said into her phone. She gave Erza a call and she was trying to tell her about what Nate is doing to her, but in the off case that she's wrong about him, she's trying to protect him by not saying any names. "It's like this guy has a thing for me and is trying to get closer to me."

"Well, what is this guy like?" Erza asked.

"He knows I'm married, he's almost half my age, but he keeps doing stunts like this." Lucy said. "I keep trying to forget him, but he keeps doing this. At first I thought he was just trying to be nice and joking around, but now I'm not so sure."

"But it's not like he actually did anything." Erza said. "Has he done anything strange or bizarre?"

"No. Not exactly." Lucy said. "The worst he's done he tried to pass off as an innocent act."

"So their might be nothing really going on." Erza said. "I think you're just overreacting to this whole thing."

"Maybe, but I'm still not entirely sure." Lucy said. "Just last night I felt like someone was watching me, but I didn't see a thing when I turned towards the window."

"Lucy, you love your husband, right? Your love for Natsu is unwavering?" Erza said.

"Yes, of course." Lucy said.

"Well, if he's bothering you that much, you should confront this guy about it." Erza said. "If you are right, tell him that you love your husband and nothing is going to change that." Lucy didn't see that as a bad idea and there's always the chance that she could be wrong. She heard a beeping coming from her phone.

"Erza, I've got another call, but thanks." Lucy said. "I could be wrong. He just might be one of those guys that's like candy that's too sweet." She hang up on Erza and answered the other call. "Hello?"

"Hi, Mrs. Dragneel." She knew that voice on the other end was Nate. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I need a little advice. I was cooking up a little chicken, but I'm not sure if it's done and safe to eat or not." Lucy gave a small laugh as she was finding it completely ridiculous as to what's been going on with Nate.

"Don't eat anything if you're unsure." Lucy said. "I was just about to eat. I'll come right over and join you." She ended the call and went right over. Upon her arrival, Lucy cooked up the chicken for him and she was starting to feel more at ease. "There we go." She said as she took it out. "That's how you cook up a chicken."

"Thank you. You know my grandfather has a couple bottles of wine." Nate said. "While I'm having water with mine, would you like a glass?"

"That actually sounds nice." Lucy said as she was carving the chicken up. "I've actually been anxious the past few days."

"How about you set the table? You can tell me all about it." Nate said as he took out the bottle and poured the glass. Lucy took the food and the plates over into the dining room. When Nate saw she wasn't looking, he took out a small packet from his pocket and had some powder fall and dissolve into the alcohol. Nate came over and gave her the alcohol.

"Thank you." Lucy said as she took a sip. She did taste a little something off with her drink, but just ignored it. It seemed like a nice dinner with it just being the two of them. The two ate and talked and it felt great to Lucy since Lucy felt silly about all the stuff she thought about him.

"So what's been bothering you these past few days?" Nate asked.

"First, I need to ask you something." Lucy said. "Everything that's been going on with you the past few days seems to revolve around me. It kind of seems like you're making it happen like the flowers, my class, and this dinner."

"Really?" Nate said as he was acting like he didn't even notice.

"Yeah. Why is that? Why do you seem to have an interest in me?" Lucy said.

"Oh!" Nate said with an understanding. "It's a little quirk of mine. When I see something that interests me, I tend to get closer to it. I guess I have an eye for seeing something interesting in people."

"I see." Lucy said as she had another sip of her drink. "I had this ridiculous idea that you had something like a crush on me. I felt like you wanted to get close to me because you were in love with me or something. I feel so silly."

"Maybe." Nate said. "Then again, maybe it's not so ridiculous." He slid his hand over Lucy's leg and Lucy was feeling uneasy again and it felt worse than before. She felt she needed to get out of there.

"I need to go." Lucy said as she got up and tried to collect anything she left behind. However, she didn't get very far. Her legs felt weak and her vision got a little blurry. She knew it couldn't be the alcohol because she only had one glass.

"You're not going anywhere. At least not for tonight." Nate said as he walked over and turned her to have her face him. "A woman like you can do much better than that husband." He leaned in and actually kissed her. Lucy tried to push him off, but whatever was wrong with her kept her from using her strength and Nate was pretty strong himself. The only thing she could think of was that Nate drugged her. Nate pulled back and kissed her neck.

"Nate, stop. Stop it." Lucy said as she tried to get free, but Nate wouldn't let her go. Nate was undoing the buttons on her shirt while one arm slid down to her butt. "Stop it!" She got free, but only for a second as he pulled her back and he tossed her shirt off. Nate pushed her and she landed on the couch with him taking off his shirt. Lucy tried to get up, but Nate kept her down. He yanked off her bra.

"I'll show you the love you deserve." Nate said. He removed his pants and underwear and slid hers off. Lucy was really scared now as he came down and slid himself right inside.

"Nate, get off me!" Lucy said as she kept trying to push off, but she didn't have the actual strength to do that. Nate was ignoring her pleads and cries as he kept moving back and forth against her with his hands roaming her body. Lucy screamed, but Nate kept going as he raised both their waists with one arm and used the other to grip her breast and kissed around the other one. Lucy tried smacking her hands against him and tried to pry his hands off, but Nate let go himself. He grabbed her head and started kissing around her again. Lucy outstretched her right arm and scraped her nails against thin air with Nate still sliding in and out. Lucy tried her best to resist, but her body hasn't done anything she wanted because of the drug and he was doing everything against her will. She now knows why Nate has done everything he's done, but now she's wishing she wasn't home alone.


	4. Not a Child

Lucy felt herself waking up and she felt a bad headache. Her senses were catching up to her and she felt she wasn't in bed. She felt she was on a couch and thought she just passed out on the couch at home. She soon felt there was another body on her and she knew it wasn't Natsu. She opened her eyes and saw she wasn't home at all. She also looked to see Nate was on her and nothing was between them. Not a blanket and not even clothes. It took a while, but everything that happened to her last night was starting to come back.

"Oh my god!" Lucy whispered as she felt mortified and a little broken because of what Nate did to her. She thought he was a nice guy, but now she saw he wasn't after what he did last night. Lucy tried moving carefully so she wouldn't wake Nate up as she gently moved out of the couch and managed to get him off without waking him up. Lucy gathered her clothes and tried getting dressed as quickly as she could. When she thought she was decent enough, she grabbed everything she could carry and made sure she didn't leave anything behind. As she left, she didn't notice the sound of the door woke him up.

"Lucy?" Nate asked as he looked around and saw she was gone. Lucy ran right into her house and locked the door.

"Oh my god! Oh my god!" Lucy cried as she slid her back against the door and dropped to the floor. She felt mortified now. She couldn't believe Nate would just defile her like that after she was believing everything with him was just innocent and harmless. Lucy heard her phone rang. She prayed it was her husband because she needed to hear from him now, but she saw it was him. She thought it be best to talk about this now before he does something else. "What?" She asked as she answered the phone.

"Are you okay? You just ran out?" Nate asked.

"No I'm not okay." Lucy said. "I can't believe you Nate. Here I thought you were just being a nice guy, but I can't believe you drugged me and raped me."

"Come on. It wasn't that bad." Nate said.

"Not that bad?! Nate, that was inappropriate and unacceptable. Whatever you think would happen between you and I will never happen. I'm married and I love my husband as much as my daughter." Lucy said. "You better not say a word about this to anyone."

"I may or may not. Guys like to talk about the girls they've slept with." Nate said and that was not helping Lucy feel any better.

"We did NOT sleep together. There's a vast difference between what you think happened and what actually happened." Lucy said. "I won't say a word about this if you don't."

"If you're refusing to say a word, does that mean you secretly enjoyed it?" Nate questioned. "If you didn't in the slightest, you would tell someone about this."

"Goodbye!" Lucy said in an angry tone as she ended the call. Of course she didn't enjoy it the least little bit. Nate was trying to mess with her head, but he won't succeed.

…

Later

As evening approached, Lucy waited for Natsu and Nashi to return. She was on the lookout for Nate in case he try anything again. So far he hasn't, but that's what starting to worry Lucy. She couldn't help, but wonder what he might be up to if he went as far as drugging and raping her to have her. Her worries settled when she saw Natsu's car pull up into the garage. Lucy ran out to the front yard to greet them.

"Hey, you're back!" Lucy said as she ran straight into Natsu's arms by his surprise.

"Yeah. Geez, Lucy. We were only gone for a day." Natsu said as Lucy let her go and he and Nashi got their stuff.

"Mom, are you okay? You looked a little freaked out. Did something happen?" Nashi asked, but Lucy wasn't quite sure what to say.

"No. I just saw….a "rat" a while ago, but it went away." Lucy said. She didn't want to tell them about Nate because she still had hope for him and she doesn't really have any proof of what happened last night. She was afraid they wouldn't really believe her.

"Hey!" They looked down the driveway and saw the "rat" Lucy was really talking about.

"Nate?" Nashi said. "What are you doing here?"

"I just saw you pull up was all." Nate said as Nashi went over to talk to him and Lucy was worried on what he was really doing here. "So how was your aunt and uncle?"

"Fine. My Aunt Mavis is a lot of fun and my Uncle Zeref is a nice guy." Nashi said.

"Nashi, in the house." Lucy said as she and Natsu went on inside. Nashi thought that was a little strange for her mother to say.

"Your parents seem real protective of you." Nate said.

"I guess. It's probably just because I'm their only child. If you're worried about my Dad, I think he just needs to get use to you being around." Nashi said.

"What about your Mom?" Nate said.

"Mom?" Nashi wondered. "She might sound like it, but she's just joking around and messing with me."

"How do you know she doesn't actually mean it?" Nate said. Nashi didn't think that her Mom would actually mean the things she says where she still treats her like a child. "Nashi, your parents will always treat you like a child unless you stand up for yourself. Just like you should have done with that Dominic guy. You've got to be more assertive and demanding if you want people to stop treating you the way you don't like." Nashi didn't know where all of this was coming from. People might do things that bother her, but her parents are good people. They understand she's not a child, right?

"Nashi, get in the house now!" Lucy said.

"Alright!" Nashi said with a little frustration. Nashi came right in the house. Nate took a look at Lucy with a smirk and a wink, but Lucy just turned away and closed the door. "What was that about? Nate and I were just talking."

"She probably did me a favor." Natsu murmured.

"I heard that!" Nashi said.

"Nashi, just leave your mother alone. She's probably a little shook up" Natsu said. "Wouldn't you freak out if you saw a rat?"

"No." Nashi said, but Natsu gave her a look that was saying she need to rethink that answer. "Okay, but only if it touched me." Nashi decided to just end the talk and headed up stairs and she took with her what Nate told her. Now that she and Natsu are back, maybe things will go easy for Lucy.

"Are you going to be okay?" Natsu asked her.

"I think so." Lucy said. She could only hope. Later that night, Lucy was ready to call it a day as she went up into her room. When she got in there, the feeling came back again, but this time she knew who it was and where it was coming from. She looked out her window and this time she saw Nate staring out his window and into hers. Nate placed his hand over his heart and tapped it with a wink. Lucy moved her arm around, trying to tell him to go away and to stop it, but he wouldn't. She saw that Nate wasn't getting it, he wasn't understanding. Nate needs to know she loves where she is and that's where she's staying. What she was about to do, she wasn't proud of it, but she needed him to understand. She reached for her shirt and removed her bra and moved to the side of her door. "Natsu!"

"Coming!" Natsu said and Lucy could hear him with her removing the last of her clothes. Natsu came in the room and Lucy wrapped her arms around him from behind and kissed his neck. "Hey! What are you doing?"

"I just thought we could enjoy this night." Lucy said.

"But you've got to get up early." Natsu said. Not that he was complaining, but needed to be reasonable.

"Please. I need the man I cherish." Lucy said as she lifted the back of his shirt and he could feel she wasn't wearing anything above and it was hard for Natsu to say no. He turned around to face her as she undressed him and guide him to the bed and she pushed him down. Nate watched as he saw Lucy do this as she started down low with Natsu. He couldn't believe she was doing this. He could tell Lucy was just getting back at him. He looked as Natsu took deep breaths with Lucy sliding her hands over his abs. Nate tried looking away this time as he tried reading a book, but that didn't help. He looked over to see Natsu turn them over and kissed as he massaged her breasts and worked his lips down. Nate kept trying to ignore it, but knowing it was happening right next door fueled his rage. He tried getting his frustration out as he threw some fists in the air, but the more he looked over, the more he got mad. He looked to see Lucy straddling Natsu as he had her by the waist and thrusts in and out. Nate couldn't take it as he just got out of the room. Natsu sat up and held Lucy and she took the chance to look and saw Nate wasn't there anymore. She was hoping that Nate finally understands that this is where she was staying.

…

The Next Morning

After last night, Lucy didn't get much sleep. She was exhausted as she poured herself some coffee in a traveling mug. Nashi came down with her ready and saw how Lucy looked.

"Mom? You look terrible. Are you okay?" Nashi asked.

"Yeah. I just need some coffee." Lucy said as she took a sip. "I'm going to get the car ready." Lucy walked over and got the garage open, but she heard Nate pull up in his truck and slammed the truck closed as he stormed his way over to Lucy.

"What the hell was that last night?" Nate said as he gripped her arm.

"Nate, you're hurting my arm." Lucy said.

"You knew I was there. You knew how I felt, you knew I was watching, and you went and banged your husband right in front of me." Nate said.

"Let go!" Lucy said as she was able to get her arm free. "You didn't leave me much of a choice. I needed you to see that I'm staying with my husband. I tried to tell you, but you wouldn't listen."

"You're going to pay for that, Lucy. Your husband and your daughter will help pay that price" Nate said. "You'll see that you are meant to be with me! You'll see!" He went right back to his truck and just took off with Nashi coming out. Lucy was getting nervous now. She's wondering what he's going to do next.

"Was that Nate? He seemed upset about something." Nashi asked.

"Come on, Nashi. Let's get going or you'll be late." Lucy said as she just got right in the car and Lucy followed her.

…..

The School

Lucy pulled up to the school and parked the car. Nashi was wondering what's going on with her and Nate, but it didn't seem like she was going to get answers out of her mother. Nashi looked across the lot and saw Nate's truck.

"Hey, I'm going to fine Nate, Mom." Nashi said.

"Nashi, hold on." Lucy said as she walked over and stopped Nashi from going anywhere. "I don't think you should."

"Why?" Nashi said.

"I don't want you near Nate anymore. You need to stay away from him." Lucy said as she wanted Nashi to stay as far from Nate as possible.

"How come?" Nashi asked.

"You just need to trust me. Stay away from that boy." Lucy said. Nashi heard those words and she felt like her mother actually talked to her like she was a child. A child that didn't know what she was doing.

"I can't believe this. He was right." Nashi said.

"What?" Lucy wondered.

"Nate was right. You're still treating me like I'm a child." Nashi said as she was doing what Nate told her. She was being assertive and more demanding. "Mom, I'm not a child anymore! What do you think is going on between me and Nate?"

"You and Nate? What did he tell you?" Lucy asked, but Nashi wasn't even listening anymore.

"What? Do you think I'm going to sleep with him?" Nashi said. "I'm not going to stay away from him and it's time you stop treating me like I'm a little kid." Nashi just turned and walked off after that.

"You come back here, young lady. Nashi!" Lucy called out, but Nashi just ignored her. She saw what Nate was doing now. He's trying to get her daughter to turn against her. She agrees with Nashi about her not a child, but she was still her child and she needed to protect her.


	5. Disorderly Conduct

Nashi was pretty upset with her mother now that she believes that Lucy has always been treating her like a child instead of joking about it. She opened up her locker and was practically throwing everything in there. Simon saw she was mad about something and went over to her.

"Hey, Nashi." Simon said to break the ice.

"Hey, Simon." Nashi said.

"Is everything alright?" Simon asked.

"Yeah. I just got into a little disagreement with my Mom." Nashi said. Simon looked ahead and saw trouble named Dominic coming their way with a new set of an entourage ladies.

"Trouble." Simon said and Nashi saw it. "Let's just get out of here."

"No. I'm tired of his garbage and I'm going to make it straight what I think about him." Nashi said.

"Whoa. I'm not sure if that's a good idea." Simon said.

"We'll see about that." Nashi said as she slammed her locker shut and head right over to her.

"Nashi1 How's it going, bay?" Dominic said.

"Listen, you egocentric piece of trash player." Nashi said. "I've had just about enough of you and your womanizing ways. We're not some toys for you to play with."

"Wow! I like a girl with a little fire." Dominic said as he tried grinding up to her, but she tried pushing him off.

"Get off me!" Nashi said, but Nate came in and pounded Dominic right across the face. "Nate?" Dominic tried hitting back, but Nate caught his arm and hit in the stomach and the face again. The fight started to draw a crowd. Nate grabbed Dominic by the collar and beat him across the face with blood running down.

"Hey!" Erza shouted as she pushed through crowd and tried to get Nate to stop. "Stop it. Get off!" She tried to get Nate to stop, but he just ended up hitting her across the face and shoved her to the ground.

"Mom!" Simon shouted.

"Nate, stop!" Nashi said, but he wouldn't. Nate took Dominic and banged his head against the lockers until one of them locker doors fell off. "Stop it!" Nashi and Simon stepped in and tried to get him to stop. "Nate, he might be a creep, but he doesn't deserve this." Nashi and Simon were able to pull him off with Dominic dropping to the floor. Simon went over to his Mom and helped her up.

"Mom, are you alright?" Simon asked and it would seem so as she just brush herself off. Nate was breathing hard with some of his fury out like he was some kind of animal. Had the eyes of a wild one too.

"Nate, what's the matter with you? That was going too far." Nashi said.

"You!" Erza said as she pointed to Nate. "In my office. Now!"

…

Erza's Office

Dominic was called an ambulance and taken straight to the hospital. Erza was given info about his condition before he was taken away while Nate waited in her office. When she was told what she needed to hear, she went to deal with Nate.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" Erza said as she was trying to give Nate a lecture for what he did. He didn't even give a response. "You cracked that boy's skull. If Nashi and Simon hadn't stopped you when they did, you could have killed him."

"He deserved it. He's been a bother to a lot of girls for years from what I've heard." Nate said. "I practically did everyone a favor."

"Even if that's true, we have zero tolerance for violence here." Erza said. "I've also contacted your old school. You didn't drop out because of your parent's death. You were kicked out for disorderly conduct. You always picked fights and nearly beaten people to death. I can't accept that kind of behavior. Lucy took a big chance on you and you're ruining it."

"Is that so?" Nate said as he slammed her hands against her desk and leaned against it to get in her face. "Frankly, all these rules of yours can go to hell with you. I'm already in a bad mood, so here's what I think. You might be able to intimidate others, but no one scares me. People like you've have been trying to hold me back and I'm sick of it. You're nothing, but an old woman who only has her own power that can't last and who's just hiding behind your damned husband because of he's a dumb cop. Here's what I think of all that." Nate actually smacked Erza across the face.

"Get out!" Erza shouted as Nate left. "You're expelled! I never want to see your face on this property again!" Nate just displayed his real self. Impulsive behavior, trying to get things his way, but he didn't care at all. There was only one thing at this school he wanted and he was going to get it.

…

Nashi

Nashi was completely surprised and shaken at what she saw. She might have hated Dominic, but she didn't think he deserved a beating like that. She was beginning to feel horrible for how she talked to Lucy. Speaking of which, she saw Lucy just down the hall.

"Mom!" Nashi called out and Lucy saw her as she hurried over.

"Nashi, are you okay?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah. Mom, I'm really sorry about earlier." Nashi asked. "I think I just saw what you were trying to tell me. He acted like an animal against Dominic."

"Yeah. I just heard what happened." Lucy said.

"I don't know what got into him. He was insane." Nashi said. "He might get expelled, but what do we do when we get home and he acts like that. He lives right next door."

"Don't worry about it, Nashi." Lucy said. "He's my responsibility. I was the one who took a chance on him and I'll handle it. Now, get going. I've got a class in five minutes."

"Okay and again I'm sorry." Nashi said as she headed over to her next class. Lucy headed over to her classroom to get ready for her next class. She thought she was going to be in the clear for Nate can't bother her here. She opened up her door, but was met with something she wasn't pleased with.

"Oh my god!" Lucy said as she was horrified. There were pictures of her and Nate naked together on his couch and they were hung from the ceiling as well as all over her class. She quickly closed the door and moved as fast as she could. She grabbed all of the pictures and tossed them all into the trash can. She had to get rid of every single one before her class shows. She can't allow any student or fellow teacher see this photo. The fear made her go faster and faster and hearing the bell rang made her go even faster. Lucy reached for every single photo, but her students were just seconds away. Lucy tossed some more photos away and was breathing hard.

"Mrs. Dragneel?" She saw her next class arrived and she was able to get every single photo in the trash. "Are you alright?"

"Yes." Lucy said as she tried to get a hold of herself. She took the bag out of her trash can. "We're just going to have silent study hall. There's something I need to take care of." To make sure no one would look in the trash and see the photo, she took the trash out with her. Lucy tried to hide that she was wreck when she left for that was way too close for her.

….

Outside

Lucy took the trash bag and tossed it into a dumpster. She didn't think Nate would go this far as to turn her daughter against her and try to ruin her job. The stress and anxiety of hiding this was crushing down on her that it was almost hard to breathe. Just as she was about to go back inside, she spotted him and it seemed like he was waiting for her. Nate smirked at her before he took off in the parking lot.

"Nate!" Lucy called out as she went after him. She needed to get him to stop tormenting her before things get worse. She followed him out into the parking lot, but lost sight of him. "Nate! Nate, I know you're here. Where did you go?" Lucy made it to her car, but she saw the door behind the driver's seat was opened a crack. Lucy moved carefully and tried to stay out of sight for she was afraid he was right in there or something just as scary. She opened the door and saw nothing was in there. She relaxed for a moment, but that was before Nate grabbed her from behind and kept her mouth covered so she couldn't try out for help and he tossed her right inside with him getting on top.

"I was beginning to think we wouldn't be alone again." Nate said as he kissed her. "You shouldn't have messed with me. Now, I'll take away everything of yours. Your job, your husband, your daughter, everything until you have nothing left. Then you'll see that you should be with me." He kissed Lucy again and tried slipping his tongue in her. He moved his hands and tried to get them under her shirt and her pants. What Lucy saw that Nate didn't consider was that she wasn't under his drug anymore. She tried biting his tongue, but that only encouraged him. So Lucy moved her leg around until she drove her knee right between his legs. When she got a clear shot, she was able to knock him off her and out of her car.

"You think you can push me around?! You think you can scare?! I won't let you do this!" Lucy said. "Stay away from me….and stay away from my family!" Nate just chuckled as he stood back up.

"I can't Lucy. I live right next door." Nate said, indicating she can't escape. "I wonder how Natsu and Nashi will react if they see that picture, as well as the rest of the world." Lucy was beyond terrified as he walked off with the thought he had her now. "I'll be waiting just outside the school." Lucy was practically having trouble breathing now. She knew that if anyone saw that photo, he can easily make it look like she's just as guilty as he is. He raped her, he tried getting her daughter to turn against her, and she avoided getting caught in the act with only seconds to spare. That's when Lucy realized she can't handle this by herself, but there's only one person she can turn to.

…

Erza's Office

Lucy was able to salvage one of the photos and went straight to Erza for her to see. Erza couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"Lucy, what have you done?" Erza said.

"I didn't do anything." Lucy said. She was acting like she was having a panic attack. "He drugged me. He raped me! I keep trying to get him to stop, but he won't leave me alone."

"Lucy, it's okay. I believe you. Obviously, this boy has serious mental problems." Erza said. After learning more about him from earlier, Erza's taking Lucy's side. "Let's think about this. When you and I look at this photo, we can see that he's a psycho, but if anyone else sees this photo, they aren't going to be that easy to convince."

"He's threating to post that video for the whole world to see." Lucy said. "If anyone sees this, I could lose my job, my family, my life will be over."

"Lucy, calm down." Erza said as she grabbed her by the shoulders to get her to settle down. "None of that is going to happen. I'm not going to let it."


	6. The Accident

Nate was just outside the school with him in his truck as waited for Lucy to come out. He stayed where he was until he saw Lucy's car pull out. Nate took his car out of park and drove after her. With him believing he has Lucy where he wanted her, he believed she was all his.

"You can't escape me, Lucy." Nate said to himself. He thought Lucy was heading home, but he saw she made a different turn. Wondering where she was going, he went after her.

…..

Nate's House

Someone smashed through a window in the door. A hand reached down and reached for the lock of the door. The hand was able to unlock the door and the person was Lucy.

"I'm in." Lucy said as she went inside and tried to look around his house, but if Lucy was here, who was it Nate was following?

….

A Few Hours Earlier

"What are you going to do?" Lucy asked. "He is right outside waiting for me." After she told Erza about what Nate has been doing, Erza was going to help her so that Nate would never bother her again.

"Give me your keys." Erza said and Lucy did just that. "At the end of the day, I'll drive your car and he'll think I'm you. Meanwhile, you head over to his house and find his computer."

"His computer?" Lucy questioned.

"He would want to avoid suspicion so he couldn't have printed the picture at a photo shop." Erza said. "That means he must have printed it himself so it must be on his computer. You find it and delete it so he has nothing against you. You should also take a flash-drive and upload anything we can use against him. We'll show it to Jellal. We need to make sure he gets locked away."

"Right." Lucy agreed. Nate is not mentally well and needs to be locked away for the safety of a lot of people.

…

Lucy took off during school hours and had to go on foot to avoid being seen by Nate. She made it inside the house and tried looking around for Nate's computer, but she didn't know where it was and she didn't know how long Erza could hold Nate back. She checked all over the house until she came across the couch from the other night. She still got nervous and shivers being around it and the memories of the night was haunting her. That's when a question came to her.

"Wait. How did he take that photo?" Lucy said as she looked around. She knew Nate couldn't have held out a camera and took it himself, but how did he do it? She looked towards the direction the photo came from and looked at the shelf of a fireplace. She headed over and she found a miniature camera. She knows cameras like this are part of a security system. She followed the cord and saw it went through the floor. "The basement!" She headed over to the basement door and headed downstairs. Down there was where she saw his computer. Lucy turned it on and got to work. She opened up his files and found the picture as well as a video of what happened between them. Lucy took out the drive and started to upload them. It was then she noticed something strange. She saw the plans for a brake system for a 2010 Toyota Sedan car. She knew that wasn't her car or Natsu's. She thought it might be best to upload that as well.

…..

Nate

Nate kept following Lucy's car and he didn't know that Erza was the one driving. Nate noticed all the roads she was taking and none of them led to her home. Thinking something was wrong, he tried pulling out ahead to see what was going on. Nate pulled out ahead and Erza had no way of avoiding him as he looked and saw Erza was the driver.

"Damn it!" Nate said as he discarded the rules of traffic and hurried over to find Lucy. Seeing that, Erza reached for her phone and called Lucy.

…

Lucy

As everything was being uploaded, she was wondering why Nate had the plans for a brake system to a car. It was then she had a crazy thought and if it was crazy about a crazy person, it might actually be true. Lucy jumped from fear a little when she heard her phone go off. She saw it was Erza and answered it quickly.

"Hello?" Lucy said.

"He saw me. Did you find what we need?" Erza said.

"I just need another minute." Lucy said.

"Hurry. You don't have much time." Erza said as Lucy ended the call. When she saw all the upload was finished, she pulled out the drive and got to work on deleting the photo and the video. As soon as she got what she came for, she ran and ran out as fast as she could. She made it to the security of her house and locked up all the doors and windows with her calling Erza.

"Did you do it?" Erza said.

"Yeah. I got it on the drive and deleted it from his computer." Lucy said. "I think I might have found something else about him. This boy might be more deranged than I thought."

"What do you mean? What did you find?" Erza asked. Before Lucy could explain, she heard her locked door and heard someone was trying to get it open. "He's here!"

"Get out of there! Run!" Erza said, but Lucy thought there was no time as she heard the door unlocked. She reached for a knife and held it over her head as she was ready to defend herself as the door opened it up.

"Mom?" She looked and saw it was only Nashi and that was major relief for Lucy with all the stress she went through.

"It's just Nashi." Lucy said on the phone.

"Mom, what's with the knife?" Nashi said.

"Sorry. You just scared me." Lucy said.

"I'll bring your car back." Erza said.

"No. Drop it off back at the school." Lucy said. "Now that he knows you're involved, it's going to get dangerous for you. Go get Simon to make sure he's safe and meet up with your husband at the police station."

"What about you?" Erza asked.

"There's something I need to check out first. I'll call you later." Lucy said as she hang up before she could hear Erza protest.

"Mom, are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost or something." Nashi said.

"Yeah. Nashi, there's something I need to do. Stay here and keep the doors locked until your father comes back." Lucy said as she gathered her items and was about to leave, but Nashi grabbed her arm and stopped her.

"Mom, wait! I can tell something is seriously wrong with you." Nashi said. "What are you not telling me?" Lucy wanted to tell her, but she already endangered Erza with what's been going on. She can't do that to Nashi. Her refusal to answer was really getting to Nashi. "Mom, you're starting to scare me."

"Nashi, I promise I'll explain everything to you, but right now you need to trust me." Lucy said as she went out the door.

"Mom, wait!" Nashi called out, but Lucy didn't look back as she kept running. She needed to get moving before Nate can catch up to her. Nashi wasn't understanding what was going on. She heard her phone go off and thought she should answer. "Hello?"

"Hey, Nashi. It's Nate. Listen, I know I might have scared you with what happened at school, but I like to apologize. You think we can meet up?" Nashi was told to stay away and she wanted to obey her mother after what happened, but she also wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. What would she do?

…..

The Hospital

Lucy was able to get her car and drove off to the hospital. There was some information she needed to check and the only person she thought that could help her was Mr. Chester even though he might have no idea what his own grandson has been up to. She walked up to his room and knocked on the door and got his attention.

"Mrs. Dragneel! This is a lovely surprise." Mr. Chester said.

"Hello, Mr. Chester. How've you been doing?" Lucy asked.

"Great. The bionic surgery has gone well and I should be out of here in just a few more days." Mr. Chester said.

"That's great to hear!" Lucy said as she tried to find the bright side of the mess she's been through.

"So how's Nate doing?" Mr. Chester said as he was unaware of what he's been doing.

"Actually, there's something I need to know about." Lucy said. "You told me Nate's parents died in a car accident. Do you know what happened exactly?" She remembered that Nate's parents did die in a car accident, but she never heard how the accident even happened.

"Oh! Let me think." Mr. Chester said as he tried to remember. "It happened a couple years ago. My son and his wife were out on the highway. They were just driving by and everything seemed normal until it happened. The car was going way too fast as they tried to get off through an exit. The car wouldn't slow down and they just crashed right into the back of a truck. Neither of them made it out."

"Did anyone ever find out why like…was there a problem with the brakes?" Lucy asked.

"I don't know. Most people thought my son was just being a reckless driver or he was drunk." Mr. Chester said. "The front was greatly damaged so if there was problem with the brakes, no one could tell."

"One more thing." Lucy asked to confirm what she was thinking. "The car that they were in, was it a 2010 Toyota Sedan?"

"Actually, yes. How would you know about that?" Mr. Chester asked. Lucy was terrified at what she just heard that she just ignored the question. It just proved what she was thinking.

"I'm sorry, but I need to get going." Lucy said as she just left the room and left Mr. Chester confused to her behavior.

…

The Dragneels

Lucy was beyond scared of Nate at this point that she couldn't even think straight. At the moment, before she could go to the police station, she was driving straight home. She needed to get her daughter and her husband and get the heck out of that house. She pulled up to her driveway and ran right into her house and saw Natsu was home with him on the couch.

"Hey!" Natsu said. "Where have you been all day? I heard a few people say you just left in the middle of the school day." He took a good look at her and saw she seemed even more terrified than she's ever been. "Hey, what's the matter?" Lucy looked around the house.

"Where's Nashi?" Lucy asked.

"I think she was heading somewhere to meet up with Nate." Natsu said and Lucy nearly had a heart attack as the anxiety grew and was becoming too much for her.

"She's with Nate?!" Lucy said.

"Yeah. Maybe I was wrong about that guy." Natsu said as he had no clue as to all that he's done. "He seems like a nice guy." Lucy just ignored him as she went over to the kitchen. She pulled out her phone and dialed up Nashi's number.

"Pick up! Pick up! Pick up!" Lucy said at a volume so Natsu couldn't hear her as she was praying she was safe. She heard that the call was answered. "Nashi, where are you?"

"Mommy….come out to play." The voice on the other end was one of fear and the one who caused so much terror to so many.

"Where is she?" Lucy asked.


	7. The Confrontation

Lucy learned some startling truth about Nate, but that is not the key issue at the moment. When she saw Nashi wasn't home, she tried calling her. She was absolutely filled with fear when it wasn't her, but Nate that answered her phone. She tried to keep the volume down so Natsu wouldn't hear her.

"Where is she? What have you done to her?" Lucy asked.

"Nashi's safe at the moment." Nate said. "That was very naughty of you to sneak off like that and had Mrs. Scarlet trick me like that. I know you must have been trying to get your hands on the picture on my computer. Now Nashi might end up paying the price."

"No. Don't hurt her." Lucy pleaded.

"Okay. I won't….for the moment. How about we talk about it in person?" Nate said.

"Put her on the phone. I need to know if she's okay." Lucy said. Nate stayed silent for a few seconds and made her nervous.

"Sure." Nate said as Lucy waited to hear from her.

"Mom?" Lucy knew it was her voice, but that didn't calm down her nerves.

"Nashi?" Lucy said to confirm it was her.

"Mom, help me. I'm really scared." Nashi said.

"Don't worry, I'll come get you." Lucy said.

"That's enough." Nate said as she knew he took the phone from her. "If you want to see your daughter, come to the old abandon barn on the other side of town. Come alone and don't call the police."

"Okay. Just don't hurt her." Lucy said and the call ended. Lucy needed to rescue Nashi and she needed to move fast.

"Is everything okay?" Natsu asked, but Lucy didn't even stop to answer him. "Lucy?!" Lucy just walked right out the door without even bothering to look at Natsu. All that matter to her at the moment was saving Nashi. She headed off with her leaving Natsu wondering what she's doing.

….

The Barn

Lucy drove all the way to an old barn that no one has used in years. All she could do was hope Nashi was safe. She saw the barn and pulled up to it. She got right out of her car and hurried inside. She saw Nashi on the other end.

"Nashi!" Lucy called out, but she saw she had her arms tied behind her back and her mouth was gagged. She struggled to get out as she saw her mother. Lucy ran over to make sure she wasn't hurt. When she got close enough, she smelled something and felt Nashi's clothes were wet. "What happened?" She reached for the cloth and removed it from her mouth.

"Behind you!" Nashi said, but Lucy didn't have the chance to react as she felt something hit her in the back of the head.

…

Lucy

Lucy started to wake up even when her head hurt. She looked to see she was on her feet, but her arms were restraint with two pieces of rope holding her arms apart and held by a wooden beam above.

"Mom!" She looked to her left to see Nashi was still where she was.

"Nashi!" Lucy said.

"Mom, I'm so sorry. I should have listened to you about Nate." Nashi said.

"She should have, but I'm glad she didn't." Lucy looked to see Nate came out from behind her and saw he was holding a gun.

"Nate, if you hurt my Mom, I swear I'm going to kill you!" Nashi said.

"Oh Nashi." Nate said with a chuckle as he walked over to her. "I'm not going to hurt your mother. In fact, I want to cherish your mother."

"You're out of your mind." Nashi said.

"You don't need to be scared. I'm not going to hurt you either." Nate said. "After all, you'll end up being my daughter."

"I already have a father and he's a better one than you'll ever be." Nashi said.

"Right. Natsu. I'm going to need to do something about him." Nate said.

"Nate, please let Nashi go. She has nothing to do with this." Lucy pleaded. "Please just let her go."

"I guess that all depends on how things go." Nate said as he walked over back to her. "I don't like being tricked like that." Lucy looked back to Nashi and remembered she noticed something was wrong.

"What did you do to Nashi?" Lucy asked. "When I got to her, I felt and smelled something on her clothes."

"That would be kerosene." Nate said and Lucy's fears just kept increasing. "It's on her clothes and around her. With a simple spark, she could ignite in just mere seconds."

"You're insane!" Lucy said. "How could you do this? You even killed your own parents. I saw the brake system plans on your computer. Your parents didn't die by an accident. You sabotaged the brakes."

"So you were able to figure that out." Nate said. "It was their own fault. They kept trying to hold me back so I wouldn't get what I want. They were just like Mrs. Scarlet, trying to control me and hold me down."

"You're a maniac!" Nashi said. "There's a difference between getting people to stop getting in your way and killing them."

"Enough about me. We're here about you, Lucy." Nate said as he held up the gun to her chest and slid it across her body. "You looked into my computer. I don't appreciate being tricked like that."

"Nate, I don't understand. Why are you doing this?" Nashi said. "There are plenty of other girls in the world. Why are you interested in my Mom?"

"How could I not? Look at her." Nate said. "Not to mention she reached out and helped me. Even after what happened, she still stood by and tried to help me. Not a lot of women stick by when they see the real me." Nashi looked over and saw a small blade close to her. "Where am I going to find another women like that?" While Nate was distracted, Nashi used her leg to pull the blade to her and got it to her hands. She was able to get a hold of it and started cutting the rope.

"Nate, I believe you are a nice boy." Lucy said. "I want to help you, but you're going too far. You need to understand that it can't happen. You also can't go around torturing and hurting people like this when they decide to go against you. Just please let us go and I'm sure we can work something out."

"I've already figured out a way for us to work this out." Nate said. "You do need to be punished for that stunt you pulled earlier. All you need to do is say it."

"Say what?" Lucy asked.

"Say that I can do whatever I want to you. Your body is mine to do with as I please." Nate said. Lucy was hesitant to say that for she didn't want a repeat of the first night. "Or perhaps you want me to do that to Nashi instead." He said as he walked over to her.

"You're sick!" Nashi said. Nate was about to grab her to see his threat through.

"Stop!" Lucy called out as she got Nate's attention and he walked back over to her.

"Well?" Nate said as he wanted an answer. Lucy didn't want to, but she didn't have of a choice.

"You can do whatever you want to me. My body is yours to with as you please." Lucy said with shame.

"Mom, no." Nashi whispered.

"That's a good girl." Nate said as he groped her and massaged her breast. He put his other hand and the gun between her legs and felt her through the fabric and started planting kisses on her. Lucy tried her best to resist the urges to moan and groan. Nashi moved as fast as she could to cut through rope. As soon as she felt was free, she went to try to rescue Lucy and stab Nate, but Nate saw her coming as he grabbed her arm and knocked the blade out of her hand. Nate knocked her in the stomach and tossed her against one of the support beams with her knocking to the floor.

"Nashi!" Lucy called out.

"You haven't been discipline enough." Nate said as he took aim at her. "I'll try to avoid a vital spot."

"Don't do it!" Lucy screamed, but Nate didn't had the chance to fire as the gun was pulled away and they all saw Natsu was there.

"Dad/Natsu!" The girls said. Natsu smacked Nate in the gut and was able to get the gun out his hand and tossed it away. Then, he pounded Nate right across the face.

"I knew there was something about you I didn't like." Natsu said. Nate tried to hit him, but Natsu grabbed his arm and hit him instead. However, Nate was able to drive his knee into Natsu's gut. He grabbed Natsu by the head and drove his knee into it and tossed him down. Nate started kicking against Natsu, but Natsu was able to grab his leg and toss it up with Nate tripping.

"Dad, get the gun!" Nashi said. Natsu saw the gun and tried to race for it, but Nate tripped him. Nate lifted Natsu back up and hit him right across the face and had him fall to the ground. Nate went over and grabbed the gun and aimed it at Natsu.

"It's over! Lucy's mine!" Nate declared.

"No!" Lucy screamed and the sound of a gun was fire. However, Nate dropped his gun.

"AAAWWWGGGGH!" Nate held his hand with it bleeding. Another gun was fired and it shot right through Nate's hand.

"Freeze! You're under arrest." All of them looked to the door and saw a blue haired cop with a tattoo on his face. Lucy felt like an ocean of relief washed over for because she knew that was Jellal. He had his gun aimed at Nate with some other cops come running in. A couple cops came and apprehend Nate while a few others helped Natsu and Nashi up and another got Lucy free. Erza was there as well as she waited outside and saw them drag Nate away.

"Good riddance." Erza said. Nate was tossed into a cop car with his hands behind his back in cuffs. Nashi was given hot chocolate and a blanket for comfort with their being a couple ambulances there. Natsu came right over to her and wrapped his arm around her.

"You okay, honey?" Natsu asked.

"Yeah. For once, I'm glad you were overprotective against a boy." Nashi said as Lucy came over and hugged her family.

"I'm so glad you're both alright." Lucy said. "Natsu, how did you know we were here and needed help?"

"Yeah. You like came out of nowhere." Nashi said.

"I've noticed you've been acting weird the past few days, Lucy." Natsu explained. "When you went out of the house like that, I decided to follow you and it's a good thing I did. While I was following you, Erza called me and she told me everything. She was really worried about you."

"So when you found out we were here, you called the cops." Nashi finished for him.

"My only question is why you didn't tell me sooner, Lucy?" Natsu asked. Hearing that question is what caused Lucy to breakdown in tears.

"I'm sorry." Lucy said. "I didn't think he would go this far. I thought he was a nice boy, but I was wrong. I was also afraid of what you might have thought like you were going to leave me or something." Natsu opened up his arms and held her tight.

"I'm not going anywhere." Natsu said in her ear. That was when Jellal came over to them.

"Is everyone doing okay?" Jellal asked.

"Yeah." Lucy said as she got out of Natsu's arms. She dug into her pockets and pulled out the flash-drive. "Here, Jellal. On this drive holds evidence of what Nate has done."

"Thank you." Jellal said as he took it. "This will come in handy. However, Erza gave me an idea of what's been going on. With him be charged of rape, kidnapping, and attempt to kill, he'll be locked away for a long time."

"Long time?" I hope he rots." Nashi said.

"Come on. Let's head home." Lucy said as she took her family and finally felt safe for her to go home.

….

A Week Later

"So you're not moving out of town. You're just moving to a different neighborhood." Simon said to get his facts straight as he helped carried a few boxes.

"That's right." Nashi said. "After what happened, it doesn't feel safe staying here anymore." With the truth about Nate revealed and him being locked up, Lucy and her family don't feel safe in their neighborhood and decided to move to a friendlier one.

"I still can't believe what Nate's really like." Simon said.

"I know. I didn't think he would be such a big creep." Nashi said.

"I never did like that guy." Simon said.

"You did for a little bit." Nashi said as she saw through his lie. Nashi's parents with Simon's parents were talking to Mr. Chester about Nate.

"I'm really sorry, Mr. Chester. I just thought you should know the truth." Lucy said.

"No. I'm sorry for all the trouble Nate has cause. I never knew my grandson was like that." Mr. Chester said.

"So what's going to happen to Nate now?" Natsu asked.

"He's going to be locked away for a long time. He won't ever bother any of you again." Jellal said. "During the time, we'll be having him see some professional help. Hopefully, he won't take this help for granted."

"And to make sure we don't get a repeat of this, we're having him see a MALE doctor." Erza said.

"Good. Well, I guess we should head to our new house." Natsu said.

"Good idea." Lucy said as the two of them headed for their cars and were ready to leave. Lucy took one last look at her house and the one next door. She knew you couldn't judge a book by its cover, but she really thought Nate was a nice guy. You never really know what a person is like until they show themselves. People like that could be anywhere. Lucy will keep that in mind for that person could even be right next door.


End file.
